Matthew Rust, left, shows Skye Nicholson how to make a screen print during a preview event for the new Propeller Community Innovation Center on Oct. 7 at Columbus Municipal Airport.
COLUMBUS — Elevate Ventures CEO Chris LaMothe will speak at a luncheon at 11:30 a.m. March 22 at The Commons as part of the Columbus Area Chamber of Commerce “Innovation Week.”
Innovation Week will be from March 21 to March 26, highlighting opportunities for entrepreneurship and networking for innovation.
Elevate Ventures exists to build sustainable entrepreneurship cultures in Indiana, and to foster and develop high-potential, high-growth businesses for investment and returns for its stakeholders.
The chamber joined a formal partnership, known as “Velocities,” with Elevate Ventures and The Dimension Mill in Bloomington in 2019. Since that time, local companies have benefited from direct investment, programming and mentoring from a full-time entrepreneur in residence.
As part of the week, guests at the events will learn how the partnership is supporting entrepreneurship in Columbus.
Among the guests will be David Glass of LHP Engineering Solutions and Ganesh Gandhieswaran of Conversight.ai, among others. These are just two of the 450 Hoosier companies Elevate Ventures has invested in.
Tickets to the lunch include a boxed lunch. Registration is required at https://business.columbusareachamber.com/events/calendar. The cost is $40.
In addition to the lunch, the following events will also be part of Innovation Week:
To continue the celebration, the Chamber will host the following events, designed to help showcase and spark innovation:
— Monday, March 21: gBETA Lunch hosted by Columbus-Bloomington director Elise Young
A complimentary lunch at noon in the Chamber boardroom is planned to learn more about the upcoming gBETA Bloomington/Columbus cohort and network with other local entrepreneurs. Lunch will be provided. Registration required: https://www.meetup.com/gener8torin/events/284000369/.
gBETA is a free, seven-week, pre-accelerator program for companies that are looking to achieve rapid growth and/or raise venture capital. gBETA helps entrepreneurs work in and on their business while also attaining the entrepreneurial mindset needed to be successful. This is the third cohort for the region.
— Tuesday, March 22: Lunch with Elevate Ventures CEO Chris LaMothe
Held at the Commons at 11:30 am. Registration Required: https://business.columbusareachamber.com/events/calendar
Thursday, March 24: Ignite Columbus
An event that enables innovative thinkers and doers to share their personal and creative passions, using 20 slides that auto-advance every 15 second for a total of just five minutes. There are cash awards, including a People’s Choice Award, for the winning presentations. This fast-paced, fun event is at Hotel Indigo, starting at 5 p.m. Register: https://airtable.com/shr5DT70coAOzxnOY.
Saturday, March 26: Ribbon Cutting @ Propeller
The official opening of Columbus Propeller will be at 9 a.m. Saturday, March 26. Propeller is located at 4760 Ray Boll Boulevard. The vision of Propeller is to be the home of a thriving community where we can unleash each other’s creative potential. The 9000-square foot space is home to woodworking and metalworking shops, as well as robotics, electronics, 3D printing labs. The business model calls for paid individual and family memberships, student memberships, classes, and events open to the public.
Saturday, March 26: Maker Fair @ Propeller
The Maker Fair will feature programs and equipment that will be available at the Columbus Propeller from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Makers, tinkerers and innovators will be on hand to show off their projects. Open to the public at 4760 Ray Boll Boulevard.
